Chapped lips can be a miserable thing in winter. Your lips are in pain, the skin peels off constantly, and it’s hard to get lipstick to go on evenly or stay on.

Causes For Chapped Lips:

There are different reasons for chapped lips, but here are a few that are extremely common:

Weather change – heat or cold

Aging plays a very important role in causing dry lips

Biting your lips will result in bleeding and cracked lips

Licking your lips is the worst habit!

Touching lips with fingers will transfer the bacteria on your hands to your lips and cause infections ( also aggravate chapped lips)

Dehydration

Usage of excessive chemicals (Lipsticks)

Any form of alcohol can provoke skin irritation

Any product with chemical preservatives

Leaving the lipstick on, while going to sleep

Using lip balms with alcohol, retinol and menthol

What can you do to avoid chapped lips in winter?

1. Drink plenty of fluids.

Your lips chap due to a lack of moisture in your lips and your body. The first step is to stay hydrated in the winter by drinking enough fluids. This will help your lips have enough moisture to decrease the chance of them becoming chapped in the first place.

2. Moisturize by using lip balm.

In winter, it is easier for the moisture in your lips to be taken away by the elements. This is because winter is generally drier than summer in most climates. There is less moisture in the air. So, you have to protect your lips. The best way to do this is to purchase a lip balm especially for this purpose. The best is Blistik, which comes in a tube as a solid like Chapstick. Chapstick tends to be waxy and doesn’t protect as well.

You can wrap the scarf around you so that it covers your lips to avoid exposing your lips to the winter weather.

5. Avoid licking your lips.

If it’s windy outside, the wind will remove the moisture from your lips even more quickly if your lips are wet.

6. Use a lip balm which provides protection from the sun.

If you will be at higher elevations, and even in general at lower ones, you need to protect your lips from the sun as well as the cold and wind. Use a lip balm with an SPF factor of 15 or above. The sun acts to dry out your lips just like the dry air and wind.

7. Moisturize chapped lips to encourage healing.

It is hard to get them to heal. Keep them moisturized as much as possible and avoid as much exposure to the elements until they are healed.

Home Remedies to Treat Chapped Lips:

The golden secrets of gaining fresh, soft and luscious lips are by using home remedies. They are cheap, surely available and accessible at any time. If you use these secret tips, your lips will look moisturized and healthy, even without using lipsticks or lip balms. So try these simple remedies to cure your lips and enjoy everlasting moisture.

Honey:

Using honey to moisturize your lips is the best. You need to apply this in the night, before going to bed. It is the best way to clean your lips. It will also cure dark lips, caused due to sun exposure.

Ghee:

Ghee has the same effect on the lips as honey. You need to apply a few drops of ghee on your lips, before going to sleep. It will give you smooth and soft lips, within no time.

Green Tea Bags:

The oldest home remedy followed by many is green tea bags. Press one used green tea bag, against your lips for at least 4 minutes. You need to do this every day to increase the moisture of your lips. This is the best natural remedy used to cure chapped lips.

Lemon Juice:

This remedy will help to prevent aging of the skin. It nourishes the sensitive skin on your lips, leaving them smoother and softer than before. Take a small bowl and mix one teaspoon of cream (milk) with 3 drops of lemon juice. Place the bowl in the fridge for an hour. Remove the mixture and apply it on and around the lips, before going to sleep. If you repeat this procedure for three days, you will notice best results. You can also continue it every day to prevent the lips from aging.

Rose Water and Glycerin:

Rose water and glycerin is a great combination. It provides glowing and amazing skin, with regular use. You need to take a tablespoon of glycerin and rose water. The measurement may vary according to the need of each person. You need to take equal quantities of both the ingredients. Mix it together and apply this mixture to your lips, as well as your whole face, before going to sleep. You will see mind blowing results in 5 days’ time!

Glycerin and Honey:

Honey and glycerin will help to prevent wrinkles and dry skin. You need to take a teaspoon of honey and add very few drops of glycerin to it. Apply this mixture on the lips and leave it on for 15 minutes. Wash it off with normal water. Apply a few drops of glycerin again and leave it over night. This tip is extremely useful and prevents the lips from wrinkling.

Jojoba Oil:

This remedy gives a natural instant relief from severely chapped lips. All you need to do is take a few drops of jojoba oil and apply it on the affected area. You need to leave it on for about 15 minutes. Jojoba oil helps in a speedy recovery of your lips. It will get the moisture back into your lips, by nurturing the skin cells in the lips. It helps in building new skin cells which will repair the skin immediately.

Cucumber:

Cucumber is a vegetable with all the goodness in the world. You need to take a peeled cucumber and crush it. Extract the juice and apply this onto your lips. Leave it on for 20 minutes and wash off with normal water. You will see a major difference if you use this remedy regularly.

Sugar Scrub:

You can exfoliate your lips by using a good scrub. Even a small brush will do to remove the dead cells on your lips. But the best scrub for lips is sugar. It is easily accessible from your kitchen. You can take 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and add 2 drops of olive oil to it. Scrub your lips gently with this mixture. After 3 to 5 minutes of scrubbing, you can wash it off with normal water. Apply a good lip balm after wiping your lips with a cloth. This remedy will make you lips shiny and softer than before.

Rose Water and Honey:

This remedy will help prevent cracks on the lips and acts as a superb moisturizer. All the elements in rose water and honey come together to bind the skin. Leaving you with refreshed and new skin. You need to take a small bowl and pour one teaspoon of rosewater in it. Add one teaspoon of honey and mix it together. Apply this mixture on the lips and leave it on for about 15 minutes. Wash it off with normal water and pat it dry. Do this regularly every day, until your lips feel renewed